Pro Cease Fire Petitioners seek appointment with government

By Lagi Keresoma

Apia, Samoa – 07 December 2023: The Committee that organised a petition in support for a Ceasefire in the current Israel/Hamas war is seeking an appointment with Government to present their petition.

The committee organised a march that drew a hundred people in Apia yesterday morning and expected either a Cabinet Minister or someone from the Government to present their petition after the peace march.

However, after waiting for 3 hours, they had no choice but to disperse.

Two committee members approached the Deputy Prime Minister Tuala Iosefo Ponifasio but were told that he had to get advice from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs but after 3 hours, no one came.

Committee member Tanya Toailoa said what the Government could have done was to accept their petition then they decide what to do with it. “That is what any democratic Government would do,” she said.

The petition was conducted online and drew 1024 signatures in support.

Samoans for Ceasefire Committee members – lawyers Unasa Iuni Sapolu, Muriel Lui & Tanya Toailoa.

The Samoa for Ceasefire campaign is spearheaded by a group of lawyers and supporters.

At the UN, Samoa abstained from voting on the UN resolution on 26 October 2023 for a ceasefire after Israel progressed on a campaign to root out the Hamas terrorist group following their attack of 7 October that killed 1200 Israeli civilians and took 250 hostages.

In the petition, the committee cited parts of the Samoa Government’s statement at the special session of the General Assembly on Ukraine on 1 March 2022.

“As a peace loving and vulnerable small island state, Samoa believes that there are only a few global mechanisms available to safeguard our security, continued existence and wellbeing. One of these lies in the maintenance of global peace and the respect for the rules-based international order.

“Samoa strongly advocates for peace and urge all actors involved, to focus their efforts on ensuring an immediate cessation of hostilities, protection of civilians and civilian infrastructure, refraining from any actions that may further escalate the dangerous and delicate situation in Ukraine, cease all military operations and return to barracks, and prioritize diplomacy to defuse tensions..”

“And in the same manner, we want to encourage our government to support all calls for peace and ceasefire in the Palestine and Israel conflict,” said Tanya Toailoa.

Israel’s military told the international media today that it is in the third phase of its ground operation against Hamas in the Gaza Strip. Israel Defense Forces (IDF) troops have encircled and entered the key southern Gaza city of Khan Younis, where they suspect senior Hamas commanders behind the group’s bloody Oct. 7 terror attack are hiding.

The intensity of the IDF’s air and ground war in Gaza has drawn mounting calls for another cease-fire from United Nations officials, humanitarian aid agencies — and even the families of some of the 138 Israeli hostages still believed to be held in Gaza.